Fort McCoy holds grand reopening, ribbon-cutting ceremony for renovated fitness center

After 18 months and millions of dollars worth of upgrades, the Rumpel Fitness Center at Fort McCoy was reopened before hundreds of attendees May 1 during a grand reopening and ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The ceremony was coordinated by the Fort McCoy Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (DFMWR), which also is in charge of Rumpel. The ceremony included opening words by DFMWR Director Patric McGuane as well as special comments from Fort McCoy Garrison Commander Col. Stephen Messenger, and Fort McCoy Senior Commander, Maj. Gen. Matthew Baker, commanding general of the 88th Readiness Division.

“The original Rumpel Fitness Center (Field House) was built in 1966 by the Job Corps,” McGuane said. “This program was created under President Lyndon Johnson’s administration in 1964 as part of his war on poverty. The program trained young men in vocational, technical, and social skills, and the McCoy Job Corps operated at Fort McCoy from 1966 to 1968.

“And during that time, they used $750,000 to build a field house with a swimming pool,” McGuane said. “It cost a little more to do this one. That building became what is known now as Rumpel Fitness Center, arguably one of the most important buildings on Fort McCoy.”

McGuane also noted how the building is named after Lt. Col. Donald O. Rumpel. Rumpel served as the Fort McCoy executive officer from 1978 until his untimely passing in November 1979. Rumpel was a native of Hancock, Wis., and a 1954 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he was a member of the ROTC program.

“He went on to attend the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., and at that time, at the time of President John F. Kennedy’s death, he served as the Honor Guard officer for the European Theater,” McGuane said. “Colonel Rumpel is the recipient of three Bronze Stars, the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, and the Air Force Medal. He’s also credited with founding the ROTC program here at the University of Wisconsin-Lacrosse in 1971. We are honored to have his name on our fitness center.”

In the absence of Rumpel Fitness Center over the last 18 months, customers have been using the building 1395 fitness center that was created for people to use. But through a lot of hard work by a lot of people, McGuane acknowledged that the end result of the updated Rumpel Fitness Center is something to behold.

“Fitness centers are critical to the success of the Army and our Rumpel Fitness Center is no different,” McGuane said. “We have averaged about … 20,000 visits a year up until the time we closed in 2022 for the renovations to begin. So not having a main gym has not been without its challenges.

“This major renovation of our primary fitness center has taken 18 months to complete, and we want to give our thanks to R.J. Jurowski Construction Inc. (of Whitehall, Wis.) for their design and work on making this happen,” McGuane said. “Thank you guys. … This project also would not have been completed without the support of the United States Army Reserve, (Installation Management Command), and our G-9 FMWR leadership at Fort Liberty (N.C.) and Fort Sam Houston (Texas).”

McGuane also thanked many people who supported from Mission Installation Contracting Command-McCoy, the Fort McCoy Directorate of Public Works (DPW), Fort McCoy Directorate of Emergency Services Physical Security, Fort McCoy DFMWR, and more.

Messenger said the return of the facility to regular operations will prove to be special for the entire post community.

“What you’re going to see in here is state-of-the-art with a new pool,” Messenger said. “There is all brand-new equipment, new flooring. There’s even a pickle ball court in there. … It’s an incredible new facility that will pave the way for the future.”

In his comments to the attendees, Baker also praised the team of professionals who made the fitness center upgrade happen, and more. He also noted how a fitness center is one of the main buildings of a military installation and often can provide a lasting impression to visitors.

“They come and see the … fitness center and that is their image of the base, right?” Baker said. “So, what we have here is a new image. Fort McCoy is always the gem of the United States Armed Reserve and the gem of the United States Army. When it comes to income and facilities, we get a lot of support. … It is a gem. People come and visit Fort McCoy, and they’re like, ‘Wow, I had no idea Fort McCoy is that awesome.’ And as we go forward, we’re going to continue to be awesome, right? This is one aspect of it.”

After Baker completed his speaking part, everyone gathered to cut the ribbon and officially reopen the renovated fitness center. The ribbon-cutting was immediately followed by the Rumpel Reopening 5k Run/2-Mile Walk to celebrate fitness, wellness, and the center itself.

Then after the run/walk was complete, the center stayed open throughout the day for people to come see what all the new upgrades looked like.

In previous news articles, it shows the center renovation project began Nov. 1, 2022. The project included the exterior receiving new siding, roofing, and sidewalks as well as a storage addition.

The interior received a full layout redesign that included locker rooms, cardio/stretching/equipment areas, and offices, said General Engineer Gareth Ferguson with the Fort McCoy DPW. There also is fresh paint throughout, a new entryway and vestibule, a new redesigned pool, and more.

Learn more about Rumpel Fitness Center by visiting https://mccoy.armymwr.com/programs/rumpel-fitness-center.

Fort McCoy’s motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.”

Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.

The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.

Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”

Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”